Indian onion exports reach historic level of 3m tons

India's onion export has touched 30 lakh metric tonne for the first time, breaking the previous all-time high record after almost seven years.

The country exported 30.68 lakh metric tonne between April 2016 to February 2017, which is three times more compared to the corresponding period in the 2015-16 financial year. Around 80% of total onion export of the country comes from Lasalgaon APMC, which is the country's largest wholesale onion market.

"The previous all-time high of onion export was 18.73 lakh metric tonnes in 2009-10 financial year," said sources from the National Agricultural Co-operative Marketing Federation of India Ltd (NAFED).

The average wholesale onion prices crashed in the range from Rs 350 to Rs 450 per quintal during the first 11 months of the financial year 2016-17. According to sources, there was a bumper production of onions in the country this year. There was an excess onion production of around 25 lakh metric tonne in the country.